Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an electrophoresis device.
Electrophoresis is a technique used for the analysis and separation of molecules of different sizes and chemical natures such as nucleic acids, amino-acids, proteins, etc.
The technique is based on the fact that, under the effect of an electric field, molecules of this type migrate within a substrate medium at different speeds according to their charge density and their size.
Electrophoresis is generally carried out on a solid substrate such as a gel, for example, a polyacrylamide or agarose gel, within which the molecules to be analysed or separated migrate at different speeds.
After a given migration period, during which the molecules are subject to the effect of an electric field, they are displaced within the substrate by a given distance which is proportional to their speed of migration and which is therefore correlated to their charge density and their size.
With the use of a suitable dye, the regions reached by the different types of molecules at the end of a given period can be displayed in the form of bands.
Up to the present time, truly automated electrophoresis has not been possible, in particular, because of the difficulty of preparing the substrates necessary for the application of this method.
Polyacrylamide gels which are pre-poured onto a support plate of plastics material are already known. However, these substrates are only suitable for so-called "horizontal" electrophoresis, in which the plates are disposed horizontally.
For so-called "vertical" electrophoresis, in which the support plates are disposed vertically, two glass plates and two glass inserts, which are greased and then assembled and held together by suitable means such as an adhesive tape, are generally used.
A comb is then placed at one end of the support produced and a gel is poured into the space between the two glass plates.
The manufacture of the support plates requires a large number of operations which is not compatible with the automation of the electrophoresis technique.